FAQ

In Italy, the super green pass is the EU Digital Covid Certificate issued by your home country.

You need to apply for an NI Covid travel certificate or recovery certificate, which will be used as your super green pass in Italy. 

You need to show your country’s official vaccination certificate (such as the CDC white card for US travelers) or an official recovery certificate issued by government or state health authorities, when asked for the super green pass in Italy. If your vaccination or recovery certificate has a QR code, it can’t be read by the Italian app that scans vaccination certificates, so your certificate needs to be read manually.

Be advised that not all restaurant and venue owners in Italy uniformly recognize vaccination certificates that cannot be scanned by the Italian system; however, this FAQ on the Italian government on its green pass website (in Italian only) states that US and Canadian vaccination and recovery certificates are valid as super green pass equivalents in Italy.

More information for US travelers about CDC white cards as super green pass equivalent at the US Embassy in Italy Covid-19 information page.

More information for Canadian travelers about Canadian vaccination certificates as super green pass equivalent at the Canadian Embassy in Italy Covid-19 FAQ page.

See the Australian government’s Italy travel advice page and the Australian Embassy in Rome page. On April 1, this update was posted on the travel advice page:

Green Passes are no longer required for most outdoor activities. From 1 May it’s expected green passes won’t be required for most indoor activities or services. Italy recognises Australian vaccine certificates as equivalent to the ‘Super’ Green Passes. However, the Italian Green Pass application isn’t configured to read the QR code on non-EU format vaccination certificates. If you don’t have a ‘Super’ Green Pass, carry a hard copy of your Australian vaccination certificate with you (see ‘Travel’). COVID-19 restrictions can change quickly. Follow the direction of local authorities.

The Australian Embassy in Rome has prepared a letter (in English and Italian) that may assist with confirming that Australia’s vaccination certificates are recognised as equivalent to ‘Super’ Green Passes in Italy – available here (PDF).

Your NHS Covid Pass can be scanned in Italy as a super green pass.

Check to see if your country has connected to the EU Digital Covid Certificate program. If so, the QR code on your vaccination or recovery certificate should be able to be scanned in Italy as the super green pass.

Be advised that not all restaurant and venue owners in Italy uniformly recognize vaccination certificates that cannot be scanned by the Italian system, but foreign certificates that meet Italy’s requirements are technically valid in Italy regardless of whether they have a QR code or not.

For travelers from countries who aren’t connected to the EU system, the Italian foreign ministry website indicates green pass validity for foreign vaccination certificates (bottom of grey “news” box):

“All other foreign citizens vaccinated abroad with the above-mentioned vaccines are entitled to access all venues and services for which a Green Pass is mandatorily required in Italy (see box below).”

No. The super green pass requirements apply to everyone in Italy age 12 and over.

Yes. The Italian health ministry offers a Covid-19 and green pass hotline staffed 24/7 with numbers for calling from within Italy and from abroad. The numbers to call from outside Italy are +39 0232008345 or +39 0283905385.

To check the current entry requirements for your specific country of origin and any countries you have traveled to in the 14 days prior to entry to Italy, use the Italian foreign ministry’s interactive survey.

For entry purposes, the Italian health ministry specifies that the vaccination certificate must show “completion of the vaccination cycle.” 

If the vaccination was the one-dose Johnson & Johnson, this is considered a completed vaccination cycle.

For vaccines that require two doses to complete the initial vaccination cycle, the Italian health ministry has specified that both of the doses must be completed in order to be considered fully vaccinated in Italy.

As of March 1, yes:

Health Minister Roberto Speranza has signed a new ordinance establishing, with effect from 1 March, the same rules for arrivals to Italy from all non-European countries as those already in force for European countries. For entry to the national territory, one of the conditions of the Green Pass will be sufficient: certificate of vaccination, certificate of recovery or negative test result.

We translated the most common tourist activities from the government’s super green pass chart into English so you can see which require a super green pass.

As of February 1, 2022, vaccination certificates are valid in Italy for six months from the date of the most recent vaccine dose. Recovery certificates are valid for six months from the date of the first positive Covid test result. This applies to everyone age 12 and up.

On February 2, the Italian government decided on new measures to extend vaccination certificate validity for certain categories of people for domestic super green pass purposes. These measures came into effect on February 5, 2022 (view decree in Italian):

• Vaccination certificate validity is extended indefinitely for those who have completed a booster dose or recovered from Covid after completing their initial vaccination cycle. This extension includes eligible foreign visitors.
• Eligible foreign visitors whose initial vaccination cycle (without booster) or recovery certificate (without completion of initial vaccination cycle before infection) is older than six months must show a negative result on a Covid test in order to have a super green pass in Italy (validity 48 hours with a rapid antigen test or 72 hours with a PCR test). This also applies to people who were vaccinated with vaccines that aren’t authorized or recognized as equivalents in Italy.

To check eligibility for entry to Italy from your country, visit the Italian foreign ministry survey here.

Here is more information on certificate validity from government sources:

Italian tourist board website (click on “EU Digital Covid Certificate” then scroll down to “Validity of the Certificates”):

Concessions for foreign tourists

The foreign traveler in Italy who has completed the primary vaccine cycle over 6 months ago or has recovered from COVID for over 6 months, can still access services and accommodation that requires a “reinforced” Green Pass, by having a negative antigen COVID test done within 48 hours or a molecular COVID test done within 72 hours.

Italian foreign ministry:

Validity of the Covid-19 Green Pass for access to activities and services in Italy

As of 1 February 2022, the validity of the COVID-19 Green Pass (certification) of completion of the primary vaccination cycle and of successful recovery from Covid-19 to access activities and services in Italy is 6 months.

Persons from a foreign country in possession of a certificate issued by the competent foreign health authorities of recovery from Covid-19 or completion of the primary anti-SARS-Cov-2 vaccine cycle with a vaccine authorised or recognised as equivalent in Italy, where six to nine months have elapsed since the completion of the primary anti-SARS-Cov-2 vaccine cycle or since recovery from COVID-19, are also required to present a COVID-19 Green Pass (certificate) of completion of a rapid antigen test swab or molecular test swab in order to access all services for which the Super (reinforced) Green Pass is required (such as hotels, public transportation, museums, events). Consult the table of permitted activities and the site dgc.gov.it .

No. Eligible equivalent foreign vaccination certificates in Italy follow the same standards as those imposed by the Italian health ministry for green pass purposes. In Italy, a vaccination certificate is valid starting on the 15th day after the first dose through until the second dose, and then validity continues immediately starting from the date of the second dose and remains valid as of the date of any subsequent dose.

Our source for this answer is the Italian government’s green pass website (in Italian only) FAQ page. The only timeframe this page states for the 2nd and subsequent booster doses is that it can take up to 48 hours to generate the updated certificate (for the Italian version of the EU Digital Covid Certificate). But in terms of validity, the only time it mentions there is a wait time is after the first dose (14-day wait).

A foreign recovery certificate considered valid as a super green pass in Italy must show full name, birthdate, proof of positive Covid test with date of first positive result, and identification information of government or state health authority issuing certificate. The health ministry has specified that foreign recovery certificates must be accompanied by a sworn translation.

As of March 1, yes:

Health Minister Roberto Speranza has signed a new ordinance establishing, with effect from 1 March, the same rules for arrivals to Italy from all non-European countries as those already in force for European countries. For entry to the national territory, one of the conditions of the Green Pass will be sufficient: certificate of vaccination, certificate of recovery or negative test result.

Unfortunately, not all restaurant and venue owners in Italy are properly informed about foreign vaccination certificate equivalents and therefore some are not accepting or recognizing vaccination or recovery certificates that cannot be scanned by the Italian system. 

However, the Italian government has stated that these certificates are equally valid if the vaccine is one authorized by the EMA or an equivalent authorized in Italy (Covishield/Serum Institute of India, manufactured under license from AstraZeneca; R-CoVI/R-Pharm, manufactured under licence from AstraZeneca; Covid-19 vaccine-recombinant/Fiocruz, manufactured under licence from AstraZeneca).

The certificates must be in one of the following languages: Italian, English, French, Spanish or German; otherwise they need to be accompanied by a sworn translation.

The validity timeframe of the vaccination certificates is the same as for those issued in Italy.

For more information on Italian regulations regarding third-country validity of vaccination certificates, see the Italian government green pass website (in Italian only).

The QR codes that are valid in Italy are those that are compatible with the EU Digital Covid Certificate system. That includes Covid certificates issued by EU member states as well as non-EU countries and territories that have joined the EU Digital Covid Certificate system.

To check if your vaccination or recovery certificate QR code will scan in Italy, download the app VerificaC19 (Google Play – App Store) on your mobile device. Scan your QR code selecting “rafforzata” from the drop down menu, then “scansiona il QR code.”

As of March 1, no, as long as they enter with a negative result on a Covid test:

Health Minister Roberto Speranza has signed a new ordinance establishing, with effect from 1 March, the same rules for arrivals to Italy from all non-European countries as those already in force for European countries. For entry to the national territory, one of the conditions of the Green Pass will be sufficient: certificate of vaccination, certificate of recovery or negative test result.

Unvaccinated children are exempt from quarantine requirements upon entry to Italy if they are traveling with a fully vaccinated parent (check entry requirements here). However, unvaccinated children ages 12 and up will not be able to access venues and activities that require a super green pass in Italy.